


Crush

by Tht0neGal666



Series: Haunt The Lonely [2]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Academy Era, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Ghosts, Angst, Canonical Character Death, ESPer! Haruno Sakura, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Ghosts, Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, Pre-Canon, Rin is ghost, Rivalry, Sakura sees ghosts, big sister Rin, just a bit tho!, rin pov
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-26
Updated: 2019-11-26
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:08:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21568909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tht0neGal666/pseuds/Tht0neGal666
Summary: "Because we're rivals now! Fighting for Sasuke's affection!" The girl answered vehemently, and Rin managed not to break into unhinged defensive laughter. Honestly, being on a team with her boys had ruined the word 'rival' for her. Sometimes, after listening to Obito rant and rave for hours on end, it didn't even sound like a word anymore.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura & Nohara Rin, Haruno Sakura & Yamanaka Ino
Series: Haunt The Lonely [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1355656
Comments: 9
Kudos: 398





	Crush

**Author's Note:**

> Ah HtL....my old favorite friend....Sakura is Baby!!

"Sakura! Sakura, what's wrong?" Rin prodded, worry evident in her tone. "Are you hurt?"

The snivelling girl shook her head but let out another whimper. Her parents were out of the village, as they so often were, and wouldn't be back for weeks. Definitely weren't here to comfort Sakura. 

Rin tried not to imagine Sakura's life had she not had the Sight that she does; it would have been terribly lonely.

"I- Ino a-and I aren't- We aren't friends no more!" The child cried, eyes buried in her knees. Rin frowned, ghostly hand gliding over the girl's hair. She knew the girl would barely be able to feel it, but it was better then nothing. Maybe she could find a brush.

"Why not?" She inquired patiently, waiting the several minutes it took the girl to calm down enough to respond. Rin had never been a very messy crier, but she had long since gotten used to comforting one. She had known Obito since they were younger then even Sakura was now, and Obito was _the messiest_ crier in the world.

"S-S-Sasuke." The girl sniffed. "w-we both like him! Like-like h-him!" She confided, still young enough to be intimidated and afraid of the word 'love'. 

"Oh, you have a crush? Why didn't you say something sooner!" Rin teased, trying to lift the girl's spirits. To her dismay, the pinkette sobbed louder. 

"I d-didn't wan-na make you sad! S-Sasuke-kun's an Uchiha, and O-Obito-nii was-s an Uchiha!" She whimpered ashamedly. Rin frowned, sitting behind the weeping child, her hands still lightly carding over the pink hair.

"Thats- I'm sorry you felt like you couldn't come to me with this, Sakura. I'm a big girl, though, I can handle being a little sad." She assured the girl, grossly understating the stab of pain she felt even just hearing Obito's name. Still, she wouldn't let that be Sakura's concern- she was a _kid_. She waited until she got a nod of understanding before circling back to the conversation at hand. "So, why can't you be friends?"

"Because we're rivals now! Fighting for Sasuke's affection!" The girl answered vehemently, and Rin managed not to break into unhinged defensive laughter. Honestly, being on a team with her boys had ruined the word 'rival' for her. Sometimes, after listening to Obito rant and rave for hours on end, it didn't even sound like a _word_ anymore.

"Okay," Rin said slowly, out of her depth. She really never had many female friends growing up. She got along well enough with Kurenai, but the red eyed girl always went on about how cute Asuma was, and Rin always got bored of that. She'd never had these catty disputes before. When her and Obito fought, it was rarely with words- they tussled around in the dirt with nails and teeth and elbows. It wasn't pretty, but it never lasted long. 

She didn't _really_ know how to handle something like this, but she'd try. For Sakura. 

"Okay?" Sakura prompted after Rin fell silent for a few minutes without continuing. If Rin still had blood, she would have blushed. Instead she blinked and tried to remember what she was saying.

"Okay!" She repeated, just to annoy her little sister a bit, "Well! Being rivals does not mean you can't be comrades. Kakashi-kun and Obito were rivals, ya know? They always had something to prove. But that didn't mean they didn't care about each other. So, you and Ino-chan can be rivals all you want, but that doesn't mean you can't be friends, right?" She tried, sounding as sure as she could make her voice, and Sakura slowly nodded. "At the very least, you are both going to be of Konoha. You'll _have_ to be able to work together." Rin said firmly.

"I guess..." She frowned, dragging the word out in thought. She picked her head up from her knees and wiper her eyes, staring at Rin. "Wait, what do Rivals do, then? Do we have to fight? I don't want to _hurt_ Ino-chan!" She fretted, and Rin couldn't help a small laugh. She wished her boys had shared the sentiment- it would have made her adolescence much easier.

"No no, you don't have to fight if you don't want to! You just have to...Compete!" She assured, spinning her own wheels. It was fine, though- as a field medic, she was a wonderful bullshitter. "And you can do that however you want! like...test scores, or racing, or who can help more old ladies with their bags! There was this kid that used to call Kakashi-kun his rival, and he just challenged him to staring contests or told him riddles, because Kakashi-kun liked to act too cool to actually compete with the guy." Rin rambled, frowning a little. She had completely forgotten about that bushy-browed weirdo until just then. Whatever happened to him?

Well, it seemed to work well enough for Sakura. She was regulating her breathing, just as Rin had taught her, and tears were less eager to come to her eyes. 

"...Yeah." She nodded, more to herself then anything else, before looking up at Rin with a cautiously hopeful smile. "Yeah, we can do that. I was supposed to go to her house to practice cooking in a firepit." She remembered, hopeful smile growing sharper. "I bet being good at making and using smokeless fire is sure to impress Saskue-kun! Take that, Ino-buta! Shannaro!" she exclaimed, pumping a fist, and Rin smiled Slyly.

Now this, she could help with.

"Ya know, Sakura-chan, I never had enough chakra to waste on a smokeless-fire Jutsu. You want a little lesson, before you go to Ino-chan's house?" She offered, and Sakura was halfway through an agreement before she faltered.

"Wait- wouldn't that be cheating, though?" She pointed out. "Ino doesn't have an awesome nee-san like you!"

"Oh Sakura," She sighed, shaking her head, "You're rivals, and Shinobi in training. There's no such thing as cheating." She claimed, sticking a hand through Sakura's face to make her laugh, "Besides, Ino-chan's got a _whole clan._ Maybe with their help she could stand a chance against you." She teased, standing and walking through a wall into the backyard.

Moments later, the backdoor to Sakura's house creaked open, and she met the eyes of a girl determined to fight for love.

She refused to think about orange goggles, or the eyes behind them, or the eyes she saw reflected in them. 


End file.
